Matchmakers: The Beginnings: Jessica and Ashley
by sarahanne2001
Summary: Jessica and Ashley seem inseparable, but have they always been that way. Yes, yes they have.
1. Chapter 1

_**Um hi guys. I did a thing. You should read it, and maybe check back every week for something new. I'm going to go ahead and say Pitch Perfect owns this, even though Jessica and Ashley have no background in the movie. This is the second in a universe where everyone is Pitch Perfect is dating another Bella (except Lily). Matchmakers was the first instillation and deals with events after this. I hope you guys enjoy. Please read and review. I love hearing feedback, and I'm open to suggestions for places this story can go.**_

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Ashley took a deep breath as she stood outside her new school. It was a week after the start date and the girl dreaded heading in. She was going to be the new kid, and it was a feeling she loathed.

Her parents had moved twelve times since she was born. Following her father's ever-increasing career as a hotel manager. He'd worked himself up to the top of the chain of command, but Ashley wished they could have stayed somewhere longer than a couple of years. She was shy enough without having to deal with new people all the time.

After one last fortifying breath, she strode purposefully towards the door. Only four steps into her journey and Ashley was barreled into by a blonde whirlwind.

"Sorry. I'm so sorry." The blonde called out as she ran by.

Ashley stared after the blonde, looking around to see if anyone else had seen what had happened. She shook her head and wished the rushed girl well. Without any further incidents, Ashley made it to the main office.

With her schedule in one hand and a map in the other, she made her way to first period. The moment she dreaded the most was fast upon her. When she opened the door, the living nightmare started.

"Oh, hello. Are you the new student?" The teacher queried.

With a quick jerk of her head, Ashley searched for a seat. The only seat left just happened to be next to her run away blonde. She raised her eyebrow and moved to take the seat.

Just as she made the first step the teacher spoke again, "Why don't you tell us your name, where you moved from, and something about yourself?"

Ashley rolled her eyes and slinked towards the front of the class. "My name is Ashley. I just moved from a different city, and I go to school." She then turned to the teacher and gave her a blank look. "Is that good enough?"

The teacher huffed before frowning at the brunette. "If that's the best you have, you can take your seat."

Before the teacher had even finished speaking, Ashley had power walked to her seat. She hated having to do the whole new kid thing. It wouldn't have been so bad if they could have just moved a week earlier.

She was thinking of ways to pay her father back for once again not listening to her when she felt a tap on her shoulder. A pair of warm blue eyes stared at her as Ashley tried to figure out what the teacher had said.

Seeing the distress on the brunette's face the girl held out a hand, "Hi I'm Jessica, but my friends call me Jess. Sorry about running into you earlier. Mrs. Lands partnered us up for the semester project. We have to do some sort of presentation to show our understanding of what we learn in this class. Most people do a short video of them acting it out. Occasionally they act it out live for extra points. Lands wants it to be extra creative, so she takes points off for simple things like PowerPoint presentations."

"What?" Ashley furrowed her brows, "that sounds insane."

"Everyone agrees with you at the beginning, but by the end they love it. Besides, it's half our grade so it's important that we do well. We're supposed to be using this time to plan out when and where we're going to meet."

"Well we could always meet at my house. My dad will be at work and my mom works for home. She won't bother us, so we'll have a lot of quiet space to work."

Jessica bounced in her seat, "That sounds perfect. I have three younger brothers and a twin sister. It's impossible for me to have any quiet time. Someone always wants my attention. If we become friends you might find me begging to come over and hang out away from the crazy."

"As long as you don't bring the crazy to my house we'll see about those invites." Ashley laughed.

Before Jessica could reply, Mrs. Lands restarted the class. Ashley couldn't help think that maybe this school wouldn't be so bad.

She tried to keep that thought in her head as she called out for Jessica on her way to lunch. She had had the first three classes with the blonde, but they didn't share the same lunch class even though they shared the same lunch period.

The fact that the blonde was now ignoring her confused the brunette. They had spent three periods together and even talked in the hall. Ashley sped up to try to catch the girl when she heard her name called from behind her. When she looked behind her, she saw the blonde who was ignoring her on the way to lunch.

Ashley's head ping ponged between the two girls as she finally remembered that Jess was a twin.

"Whoa, when you said you had a twin I wasn't expecting an identical one for some reason."

"Really," Jessica queried, "most people assume we're identical twins."

"You're just so beautiful it's hard to imagine that there's someone just as pretty walking around.

Jessica stared at Ashley. Ashley blushed as she realized what she'd said, "That sounded like a line and it wasn't supposed to. I don't take it back. I just wanted you to know I was completely sincere."

"Oh." The smile was slow in coming, but it blinded Ashley with its intensity. Jessica linked arms with Ashley and dragged the stunned girl towards the lunch room.

When they got to the cafeteria, they realized they both brought their lunch. With a sympathetic glance at those stuck in line, Jessica towed the willing brunette to the only table filled with people.

"Hey." Jessica called out as she sat next to her sister pulling Ashley down next to her. "Guys, this is Ashley. She just moved here. Ash these are my friends. The goofball on the end is Chad. Next to him is Kelly, Lisa, Tom, and on the end Sam. Next to, you is Hope and on the other end is Jace. Last but definitely the most important is my sister McKenzie."

Ashley smiled and waved at the group. They all seemed nice. Well, almost all of them seemed nice. McKenzie glared at Ashley until Jess glanced over. It was only then that she smiled.

The brunette shrugged and started taking her lunch out. She was dragged into a conversation by Hope about what songs were good for a choir to sing. Overall, it was turning into the best first day that she'd ever had.

After lunch, Ashley suffered through three more classes without Jessica in them. Though she had just met the girl, the blonde made their shared classes bearable.

Her final class was the one she looked forward to the most, even before she'd ever stepped foot in the school. Very rarely did things ever go wrong in chorus. Most of the kids she'd taken chorus with throughout the world were nice and welcoming. This time she'd at least know three students. Jessica, Hope, and Sam were all in the class with her.

She managed to once again slip into class early. Her promptness had derailed several teachers' get to know you speech, simply because they didn't realize she was there until the end. With only ten kids in the class, Ashley wasn't optimistic that she'd manage to get by without it this time.

The teacher walked in as soon as the bell rang ad immediately noticed the new girl. "Ah, fresh blood. Come on down to the front so we can see where you belong. Let's hear some scales and then give us a song."

Ashley rolled her eyes and whispered something to Jessica. When she got a quick nod, she made her way to the front.

Her scales gave cover for the quick quiet conversations Jessica was having with Hope and Sam. The smiles on their faces told Ashley that her plan was good to go.

With a quick nod from Ashley, Jessica stood and started the song. "Dearest, Darlingest, Momsie and Popsicle,"

"My dear Father." Ashley intoned.

The teachers head swiveled between the girls trying to figure out when this had been planned. Her head shot back to the rest of the class when two more students joined in on the unexpected duet.

Mrs. Keel fell in her chair in shock as her entire class started backing the new girl. How they all knew how to do the background for a Wicked song escaped her. That her class had hidden talents amazed her.

When the song finished she stood and threw her hands together as hard as she could until the pain became too much. "That was amazing. How long have you planned that? When did you plan that? When were you going to tell me you could do that?"

The class shuffled looking at each other when Hope spoke up, "We, uh, we didn't actually plan or practice that. Jess, Sam, Ash and I were talking about awesome songs for choirs to sing at lunch and that one came up. Ash asked Jess if she wanted to sing it with her and Jess asked Sam and me."

The teacher turned to the instigator and raised an eyebrow. Ashley caved quickly, "I just didn't want to have to sing by myself. Besides, that song shows of my voice. I was just as surprised as you were when everyone jumped in."

Sam jumped in, "This stuff is hot right now. We've actually been trying to get you to let us sing this way for a while now. You just haven't let us show you what we can do."

Mrs. Keel looked at each of the student who were nodding and looking hopeful. "Well I guess we have a lot of work ahead of us if we're going to make this work."

The rest of class was spent learning what the group could do. Everyone thanked Ashley as they walked out. Jess jumped on her from behind and nearly took the unsuspecting girl down.

"That was the best ever! Thank you so much for getting her to give that a chance. Maybe this year we'll get to sing cool songs instead of old hymns and boring songs." Jessica squealed.

"Yeah. This year is going to be dope." Sam added as he pulled Jessica off Ashley's back. "Just as long as you don't kill the new girl."

"Whatever." Jessica said bouncing in place. "The new girl and I have plans. We have Lands this semester so we have to get started on our project. I have a feeling it's going to be music related."

The girls walked to Ashley's house as Jess pointed out anything interesting on the way. The girls lived in the heart of the wealthy side of Miami. The school only took students from its surrounding affluent neighborhood so busses weren't a thing. All the students had cars, rides, or lived in walking distance.

Ashley stopped Jessica when they reached her house, "So, uh, just a few things before we go in. My mom is probably writing or sleeping so we have to be somewhat quiet when we're not in my room. I've got the entire attic and it's soundproof so I can sing without bothering my parents."

"Oh, um, okay." Jessica shrugged. The two girls quietly made their way into the house. Jessica was more than a little creeped out at how quiet it was. She could even hear the hum of the refrigerator from the front door. In her house, there was never any silence. Five kids meant that someone was always doing something.

They quickly made their way to the attic, where Ashley immediately put on some music. A sharp breath alerted Ash that Jess liked her room. She smiled, as she looked around, trying to see it from her new friend's perspective. The room was meant to soothe, with light pastels accenting warm white furniture and walls. She knew that the décor was probably the furthest thing from Jessica's mind. The three guitars, keyboard, and recording equipment were the attention grabbers of the room.

"This is all yours?" the stunned blonde breathed out.

Ashley ushered Jessica to her study area, "Yeah, it's all mine. My mom and dad try to buy my forgiveness for moving all the time. What you just see is a collection of times I've had to pack up and leave wherever we were staying. They say it won't happen again, but I'm not sure if they mean it."

"Do you, do you ever keep in touch with the people you leave behind?" Jess questioned softly.

"I haven't really made that many friends. When I was younger we would stay in a place longer, but when people started noticing how awesome my dad was we started to move more."

Jess grabbed the frowning girl's hand, "What does your dad do exactly?"

"Well he works with hotels. When I was a baby he just managed hotels, but then he realized that he could fix bad ones. Now he travels around and is paid a lot of money to fix failing hotels. We've been all over the world because of that. He promised me when I was starting middle school that we'd move back to the States before I had to go to college. When he was offered the job here in Miami, he took it. He's hopeful that he'll find a couple of hotel's to work on while he's here. We just moved around so much, and I often didn't speak the language. It was really hard to get to know people."

"Well I'm your friend now, and you won't get rid of me just by moving." Jess said as she scooted over on the couch to hug Ashley.

After a few minutes, Jess released Ashley to go and look at all the musical equipment, "Do you know how to play all of these, or are you still learning?"

"Well I started piano when I was in kindergarten, but I'm still learning some of the new things the keyboard can do. Some of the synthesizer things can get complicated quickly. As for guitars, I started them when I was 10, though the bass is a recent addition. I have the basics down, but I'm not the best. I mostly just play simple things to accompany the songs I write."

Jessica whirled around surprised, "You write songs too?"

Ashley shrugged, "Music is kind of all I had in a lot of the places that I've lived. It's sort of become my go to things to make me happy or keep me occupied."

"Well now you have me." Jess said smiling, "I'll keep you from getting bored."

Ashley smiled back, "I think this is the beginning of a beautiful friendship. Now would you like to watch a movie, or work on our project?"

"A movie sounds great. We can work on our project later. We've got the whole semester."


	2. Chapter 2

The next morning Ashley arrived at school a little early, hopping to chat with Jessica and the kids from chorus before first period. Ashley made it to her locker without seeing anyone she had wanted to talk too. Just as she was finishing gathering her books for the first couple of classes, someone stopped next to her locker. Ashley shut the locker and looked over at the face she'd gotten to know so well.

"Hey McKenzie, how are you this morning?"

The blonde's eyes widened, "What? How did you know it was me? No one can tell us apart. Even our parents have a hard time."

Ashley smirked, "You're right. You two look almost exactly alike, and I haven't had time yet to find the differences. Truthfully, I figured out yesterday that your sister has boundary issues, at least with me. If you had been her, I would have already been hugged and bombarded with whatever she wanted to talk about. Not that I mind or anything. I'm not the most outgoing person and she is which is nice. Now did you need anything?"

McKenzie stared for a couple more second before glancing around. Once she determined no one important would overhear her, she leaned in closer to Ashley, "I don't like you. You come here from God knows where and now you're the only thing my sister can talk about. Just remember, I'm watching you. If you do anything that hurts my sister I'll make you wish you'd never been born."

Before Ashley could even form a response, a pair of arms hugged her from the back. Jessica squeezed Ashley before moving to face both girls. "What's going on guys? You're looking mighty serious."

"Oh I was just telling Ashley about the party Chad is throwing this Friday. She was explaining that she couldn't come because she has plans." McKenzie told her sister, glaring at Ashley when Jessica wasn't looking.

Jessica pouted and looked at Ashley. Ashley looked at both girls before giving a slight nod to McKenzie indicating that the threat had been received and understood. "Sorry Jess, my dad has some work thing I have to attend with him and my mom. He's probably just trying to make his bosses think he's a family man. I'd love to go to the party, but I can't get out of this."

Jessica pouted then smiled, "I understand, but you're going to come to a party eventually. Chad throws the best parties. Their pretty exclusive and a lot of fun."

"I'd love to come. I shouldn't have any plans with my parents for a couple months after this Friday."

"Great. We should head to class. The bell is about to ring. Bye McKenzie." Jessica linked arms with Ashley and dragged her down the hall as she waved to her sister.

Ashley spent the first period trying to figure out what McKenzie's problem was. She had only been there for a day, and had only interacted with the girl at lunch. The hostility was as surprising as it was intense. Jessica finally nudged the distracted girl, and Ashley gave up trying to figure it out.

After school that day, Ashley left Jessica talking to Hope and Sam on the pretense that she had left a book in her locker. She was actually going to find McKenzie. The conversation from earlier was still bothering her, but she didn't want to upset Jessica with it.

Ten minutes later, Ashley cornered McKenzie in one of the bathrooms. "Okay, I've waited all day to talk to you. You've got some explaining to do about earlier, or I'm going to tell Jessica what you said."

McKenzie huffed and looked at the ceiling, "Look, I don't want to tell you this. I feel like I'm breaking Jessica's confidence, but I feel like you should know. This whole clinging to you, instant best friend thing you've got going on with Jessica, well it's happened to her before. You'd think she'd learn from the past, but here she is repeating the same behavior. Last time she was instant "best friends" with a new girl she got dumped. After a month or so, the girl just stopped hanging out with her, and finally stopped talking to her all together. Jessica was devastated, and I'm not going to let her go through that pain again. Just remember, I'm watching you." With that, McKenzie pushed left the bathroom.

Ashley stood there staring at the closed door. She took a deep breath and resolved to be the best friend that she could be to Jessica. Jess would be her first best friend ever, and Ashley didn't want to mess that up. With that decided, she went looking for Jessica.

* * *

A week later McKenzie was fed up. She had thought her talk with Ashley the second day would have created some distance between the two. She'd miscalculated, and they were now inseparable. Jessica was supposed to be her best friend. They were twins. It's the way things should have been. McKenzie plotted and planned her next move. Her opportunity came Saturday when she convinced Jess to have a twin day with her. The duo had been shopping at the mall for a couple hours before McKenzie started operation unfriended.

"So how's Ashley?" Kenz started out.

"She's great. She had some kind of meeting this weekend. She didn't go into much detail but she was nervous. I hope everything is going okay. I won't get to see her until Monday, so we can have a twin weekend instead of just a twin day. I forgot to tell you earlier." Jessica enthused, as she browsed tops. Jess's distraction prevented her from seeing the anger that crossed her sister's face

"Jess, I've got something to tell you. I wasn't going to mention it, but I think it's something you really need to hear."

Jessica gave her sister her undivided attention, "This sounds serious."

McKenzie put on her most concerned look, "That's because it is serious. I heard something that I wasn't supposed to overhear and it had to do with you. I hear Ashley talking to someone; I couldn't see the other person. She was telling them how she didn't want to be just your friend."

Jessica furrowed her brow, "Huh?"

"I couldn't hear everything because I didn't want to be caught, but from what I overheard she just wants to get in to your pants. I just don't want you to get hurt by someone you thought was a real friend." Kenz said, reaching out to comfort her sister.

Jess shrugged off her hand and went back to shopping, "Thanks for telling me M. I'll watch out for anything, but as of right now, I wouldn't mind if she got in my pants. Well as long as it came after us dating."

McKenzie barely held in a frustrated scream as she glared at her sister. This wasn't how it was supposed to go. Jessica was supposed to be disgusted and dump Ashley as a friend, not want to date the girl. A subdued and plotting McKenzie continued with twin weekend.


	3. Chapter 3

"I know you don't like the quiet much, but it's really peaceful here. Mom asked me yesterday if I was planning on moving in with you, I'm here so much." Jess relayed as she dropped her backpack by Ashley's bedroom door. It was the second weekend the blonde had spent away from home. Her brothers loved it, but her sister hated it. Jess, however, didn't care. She simply loved spending all her time with her new best friend.

Ashley was an easy person to talk with. She never judged Jessica, even when she claimed to want to kill her brothers. She was also surprisingly cuddly, or at least that's what Jessica thought. When the girls weren't working on homework or music, they were curled up together on Ashley's bed. Sometimes they watched T.V. or listened to music, but most of the time they just talked.

Ashley turned away to fiddle with her guitars to hide her blush, "I'm really glad you like it here. I like you being here. It's…. It's just nice to have someone around. Someone who wants to spend time with me."

Jessica quickly moved to Ashley's side and turned her chin so they were eye to eye, "Ash, you're simply the best. Your parents are losers for not realizing that. I've never been as happy as I am now, and that's because of you." Jess smiled at the now fully blushing girl, "I know we've only known each other for three weeks, but it feels like I've known you forever. You just, you make me feel happy. When I'm around you, it's as if the world fades. We like a lot of the same stuff, but in different ways so we always have something to talk about. I guess what I'm trying to do is ask you if you'd like to go out with me? Would you be my girlfriend?"

"Wha..." Ashley's eyes bulged, and her jaw hung open. Jessica giggled at her incredulous look, and that snapped Ashley out of her daze. "Yes. Yes, oh god yes. I'd love to go out with you. I didn't even know you would like me that way."

Overcome with emotion Ashley did the one thing she'd been daydreaming about since that first afternoon in her room. She leaned in and pressed her lips against her favorite blonde's. Both girls sighed into the kiss, wrapping their arms around the other.

Ashley rested her head against Jessica's. She didn't even try to control her smiling. "I've liked you since the first day. I just didn't want to ruin our friendship if you didn't like me back. You're the best friend I've ever had."

"You're my best friend too. I'm so glad I ran into you that day. It's like you bring vibrant colors into my once dull life."

Ashley pulled away from Jessica and snorted, "You have got to stop spending so much time on your literature homework. Come on, let's go cuddle on the bed and watch mindless television, or make out. Whichever one seems more interesting."

A couple hours later, the girls were eating their freshly delivered dinner, and Jessica asked the question she'd been distracted from earlier, "Did you really like me like me from the first day?"

Ashley nodded as she swallowed, "Oh yeah, it was like at first shove."

Jess bumped her shoulders into Ashley's, "I didn't shove you. I just didn't see you, and I did apologize."

"That's what really started my crush. You were going so fast, but when you turned around to make sure I was okay and to apologize, I was a goner. Then I had to sit next to you in first period, and the way you smiled at me. I was incredibly happy when you wanted to be my friend. I never thought anything would come of it. Honestly I had you pegged as straight."

Jessica smiled a mischievous smile, "Well I haven't actually dated anyone before, but you are the only girl who's caught my attention. I just feel so at peace with you, that and I've now discovered you're a great kisser." Ashley tossed a cucumber from her salad at Jessica, and they both laughed.

After they'd cleaned up from supper, the girls found themselves cuddling like normal on Ashley's bed. With her head resting on Ashley's shoulder Jessica broached Monday, "So, Are we going to tell anyone about us?"

Ashley tensed for a moment before relaxing, "I'm not sure I want anyone to know."

A quiet "Oh" alerted Ashley that something was wrong. A moment later she realized what the problem was, "It's not become I'm ashamed of us, of you. I want to give us a real shot at lasting. Adding more people before we get a chance to explore us could spell disaster."

"Disaster? You really think someone could cause so much trouble that we'd break up?" Jess questioned.

Ashley flapped her hand in the air, "Well no, I guess not really. I mean I have seen it before, but I think we would be okay. I guess I would just prefer a little time to get used to dating before we told anyone."

Jessica forced Ashley to meet her gaze, "You just had to say that. I don't want to hear what you think I want. I want to hear what you want to say. If this has any chance of working you can't say something when you mean something else. That isn't fair to either of us."

"Okay. I won't do that again. You mean to much to let something so stupid come between us."

With the heavy stuff out of the way, Ashley shut the light off. Both girls snuggled in, thinking about their new relationship. Unbeknownst to the other, both sent out a pray that everything would work out.


	4. Chapter 4

"Just remember to breathe and you'll be fine. My parents already love you." Jessica rubbed soothing circles on Ashley's lower back, trying to calm the stressed girl out.

Ashely took deep breaths, "Your parents only know me as your friend. They don't know we're dating. They're going to hate me when they find out."

"They will not hate you. You might get the 'be nice to my daughter or else' speech from my dad, but it'll pretty much be a normal dinner. They already know how much I like you, and how well we get along. It won't be a big leap from best friends to girlfriends."

The brunette nodded and with one last deep breath she moved up the drive. The girls had been officially dating for a month now, but had decided to keep it quiet. They wanted some time just to themselves. It had worked wonders, bringing them closer than they'd imagined. The girls spent most afternoons holed up in Ashley's room. Though they hadn't gone further than kissing, both girls were happy with where they were. The stories told and secrets listened to over the month had just strengthened their relationship, giving them the strength to withstand the storm that coming out inevitably brought.

Jessica threw open the door and yelled out, "Everybody, I'm home and I brought Ashley with me. Family meeting in the den please."

Ashley hissed, "I thought we were going to tell them after dinner?"

"You'd probably pass out from nerves before it even started."

After a brief glare, Ashley consented. The idea of telling Jessica's family was freaking her out. If they didn't accept her she would be devastated. The whole family, besides McKenzie, had welcomed Ash with open arms. They made Ashley realize what she'd been missing her whole life without realizing it, a family. The fear of losing them had pushed back their coming out until Jessica decided enough was enough. The blonde had assured Ashley that her family would still love the girl.

Once everyone had gathered in the den Jessica beamed at her family, "Guys I've got big news, wondrous news."

"You've found your real parents and you're moving out?" the oldest brother said, high-fiving the other two.

"No you goober, but I did find the animal shelter Mom and Dad got you from. Anyway, my good news is that I'm dating."

The youngest brother interrupted, "Someone likes you? Are they sick? We should take them to the doctor."

Jess glared as everyone including Ashley giggled at the eight-year-old. "No smart-aleck, I'm dating Ashley and she likes me just fine."

Jessica's mom sighed, "Is that all you were going to tell us? There was no need to call a family meeting sweetheart. We already figured you two were dating. Now I have to get back to the kitchen before supper burns. Everyone go wash their hands, supper will be ready in 10."

That night supper was a lively affair. The boys were in fine form acting out their adventures at school. Ashley basked in the warmth as she truly began to feel accepted as a girlfriend instead of a friend. The only sour part of the evening. Ashley could feel McKenzie had been glaring at her when no one was looking. Ashely was finding it harder than ever to ignore the girl.

After the meal finished Ashley's nightmare began. Jess's dad pulled her into his study and shut the door. Ashley reached out to grab the back of the chair in front of her as her vision flicked. Jess's dad took one look at the girl and made her sit down with her head between her legs.

"It's going to be okay Ashley. Just take some deep breathes. There's nothing to worry about." He murmured trying to calm her.

After a couple minutes Ashley cautiously lifted her head. When the room didn't tilt she straightened up and looked Jess's dad in the eye. "I'm sorry Mr. Stone."

"It's okay Ashley. I shouldn't have tried to scare you. I wasn't aware of how well I'd succeed."

"Ha," Ashley snorted, "How else would you expect me to react? I am dating your daughter. Aren't dads supposed to be all over protective and everything? Isn't this where you tell me to treat her right because you've got a deep hole with my name on it if I don't?"

Mr. Stone laughed, "That's a good one. I'll remember it for McKenzie's next boyfriend. I trust you with Jessica. You're a good kid, plus you can't knock her up. That's soothes some worries I would have had if she was dating a boy. No, I just wanted to scare you and Jessica. She's probably outside the room wearing a hole in the floor. I'm just sorry you started hyperventilating."

"It's okay Mr. Stone. I've just been dreading this since we started dating. I've always known I liked girls, but some of the places I've lived have been hostile to gays. Even looking at the same gender to long or "wrong" was enough to get beaten almost to death. Your daughter means the world to me, but it's a work in progress. Thankfully she's patient with me."

He nodded and rested a hand on her shoulder, "If you need someone to talk to my door is always open. Just remember that if someone can't accept you for who you are then they aren't a real friend."

Ashley surprised the man with a hug and a heartfelt, "I will. Thanks Mr. Stone. You've helped me a lot more than you know."

With that she left the room. He could see her drag his daughter upstairs. He shook his head. Thank God for girls. Life was much too boring without them.

Upstairs Jessica pulled Ashley into her room. McKenzie had left after supper to spend time with a friend, so the girls didn't have to share the room. "What did my dad say? I didn't really think he would pull you in for the talk."

Ashley wrapped her arms around her girlfriend and laughed. She didn't stop until the pokes from Jessica became painful. "Your dad just wanted to mess with us. That and tell me his door was open if I needed someone to talk to. He did apologize after almost making me pass out."

"What!" Jessica screeched. "Are you okay? Do you need to sit down?"

"Jess, Jess, stop it." Ashley slapped the insistent hands away, "I don't need to sit down. I'm fine, I promise. I just started hyperventilating a little. Your dad sat me down and we got it under control. He didn't realize how much it would freak me out. He apologized. It's all good now."

Jessica pouted and finally managed to pull Ashely down on the bed. She moved in for a kiss when the door popped open. Both girls looked to the door just in time to see Jess's dad give her mom twenty dollars. The girls looked at each other and then back at the adults.

Jess's mom answered their unasked question. "We bet on whether or not you two would be making out when we opened the door. I won of course. We wanted to come up here and set some ground rules. Basically don't expose your brothers to anything they shouldn't see or hear. You're both 16, and we know that no matter what we say you'll do whatever you want, so just do it responsibly and keep others in mind. We're very content in the knowledge that all of our children will die virgins, and we don't want you two to spoil that."

When the door shut Jessica buried her face into Ashley's shoulder. "Kill me now." She moaned. Ashley just laughed and pulled her up for another kiss.


End file.
